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BIG STORY JUNE 04, 2021 | The Indian Eye 8

by Amit Acharya, a practicing ic principles.
Advocate in the Supreme Court The company has also said
of India and Delhi High Court, that the Ministry of Electron-
through his lawyers Akash Va- ic and IT should publish the
jpai and Manish Kumar. Standard Operating Protocols
The petition said that every on procedural aspects of com-
significant social media inter- pliance for public consultation.
mediary has the responsibility “We also would like to reaffirm
to appoint a Resident Grievance that Twitter continues to ac-
Officer (employee of SSMI who cept grievances from users and
should be resident in India) who law enforcement via our exist-
will act as a single point authori- ing grievance redressal channel
ty for receiving and disposing of available here under the new
complaints within a fixed time. Rules,” it said.
They are also responsible for As per Twitter, it was recent-
receiving and acknowledging ly served with a non-compliance
any order, notice and direction notice and has withheld a por-
issued by the appropriate gov- Team of Delhi Police Special cell carrying out searches in the offices of tion of the content identified
ernment/competent authority or Twitter India, at Lado Sarai in Delhi on Monday. (ANI Photo) in the blocking order under its
court of competent jurisdiction. ‘Country Withheld Content’
He also pointed out that the policy.
Information Technology (Inter- Twitter maintains that the es-
mediary Guidelines and Digital calated content constitutes legit-
Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 imate free speech. However, it
has come into force from Feb- has been compelled to withhold
ruary 25, and the respondent in response to a non-compliance
Centre had given three months notice due to the law’s limited
to every SSMI to comply with scope under Section 69A, which
these Rules. This three-month gives limited room to an inter-
period got over on May 25 but mediary to defend the content.
respondent Twitter has separate- Not doing so poses penal con-
ly and jointly failed to appoint a sequences with many risks for
Resident Grievance Officer to Twitter employees.
redress the complaints of its us- The Delhi Police responded
ers with regard to the violation to Twitter’s statement. “Twitter,
of the provisions of the aforesaid being a public platform, must
Rules, the petitioner said. lead by example in demonstrat-
But Twitter on May 27 said it ing transparency in its function-
planned to advocate changes in ing which has a bearing on public
core elements of India’s new IT India's IT minister Ravi Shankar Prasad discourse and should proactively
Rules that inhibit free and open bring clarity into what are sub-
public conversation, while also rule of law,” a company spokes- will continue our constructive ject matters of public domain,”
expressing concern over “intimi- person said. dialogue with the Indian govern- it said.
dation tactics” used by the Delhi The spokesperson added ment and believe it is critical to In another development,
Police against it recently in the that Twitter is at present con- adopt a collaborative approach. WhatsApp has sued the Indian
‘Congress toolkit’ case. Stating cerned by recent events regard- It is the collective responsibili- government to stop what it said
that it will strive to comply with ing its employees in India and ty of elected officials, industry were oppressive new internet
the revised IT laws in India, the the potential threat to freedom and civil society to safeguard rules that would require it to
U.S.-headquartered firm has of expression for its users. “We, the interests of the public,” the make people’s messages “trace-
also sought a minimum of three- alongside many in civil society spokesperson noted. able” to outside parties for the
month extension of the compli- in India and around the world, According to Twitter, it is first time. The lawsuit, filed by
ance window. have concerns with regards to particularly concerned about the WhatsApp in the Delhi High
“To keep our service avail- the use of intimidation tactics requirement to make an indi- Court, seeks to block the en-
able, we will strive to comply by the police in response to en- vidual (the compliance officer) forceability of the rules that
with applicable law in India. But, forcement of our global Terms of criminally liable for content on were handed down by the gov-
just as we do around the world, Service, as well as with core ele- the platform, the requirements ernment this year. WhatsApp,
we will continue to be strictly ments of the new IT Rules,” the for proactive monitoring and a service owned by Facebook
guided by principles of transpar- company spokesperson added. the blanket authority to seek in- that sends encrypted messages,
ency, a commitment to empow- Twitter plans to advocate for formation about its customers. claimed in its suit that the rules,
ering every voice on the service, changes to elements of these It believes this represents dan- which were set to go into effect
and protecting freedom of ex- regulations that inhibit free and gerous overreach that is incon- on Wednesday, were unconsti-
pression and privacy under the open public conversation. “We sistent with open and democrat- Continued on next page... >>

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